New Beginnings
by NarglesandNifflers
Summary: Harry has returned to Hogwarts and is hoping for a peaceful year now that Voldemort has gone. But things with Harry are never peaceful, especially not when he finds himself rapidly becoming obsessed with Draco Malfoy...again.
1. Chapter 1

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Harry Potter.**

Harry hadn't wanted to return at first.

He had dreaded the stares and the whispers he knew would come his way. He shuddered at the thought of being the centre of the gossip again. And, if it wasn't for the fact that both Ron and Hermione were returning for their eighth year, he probably wouldn't have returned at all.

Thinking back over it now, he was glad he did. Of course, he still had to put up with the fact that almost everyone in the younger years worshipped him, and the fact that almost every girl in Hogwarts seemed to have a crush on him. But, strangely, these things weren't bothering him as much as he would have expected.

Things were much nicer in eighth year, despite the fact that they were all being piled with homework in preparation for their Newts. The people were nicer, for one thing. As the eighth years were together in every class, even sharing a tower, they had become closer, in fact, sometimes it seemed as though the four houses didn't even exist. It was now perfectly ordinary to see Parvati and Pansy deep in gossip, perfectly normal for Seamus to challenge Blaise to a game of chess. The war had been devastating, Harry reflected, but it had certainly helped to bring people together.

Although they had only been back for a few weeks, Harry had already fallen into a routine, which admittedly, consisted mostly of studying for Newts. However, on Saturdays', he would usually go out and fly his Firebolt, sometimes spending nearly the whole day flying around the grounds, feeling the wind whipping through his hair and forgetting about all his worries as he savoured the wonderful feeling of flying.

Harry was daydreaming about that now, staring into the flickering fire, his quill motionless. He was brought back to reality by Ron throwing a cushion in his face.

"Hi, mate," said Ron, grinning at his indignant face. "You looked like you were in a trance."

"I was thinking about flying tomorrow," said Harry, picking up the cushion and hurling it back at Ron, who ducked.

He noticed a few people glancing round with interest at these words. "Er, anyone else who wants to come is welcome," he said automatically.

There were gasps of excitement and the words, "Thanks Harry!" were echoed around the room.

Harry smiled uncomfortably, fixing his eyes on his Potions essay. He still didn't like being the centre of attention.

Xxx

In the end, every single one of the eighth years turned up to fly. Watching them laughing and joking together, taking turns flying the Firebolt, Harry found he didn't regret letting them use his broom in the slightest. However, he couldn't push away the feeling that something was missing.

"You all right mate?" came a casual voice from behind him.

"Fine," said Harry, quickly pinning a bright smile to his face and hoping that Ron didn't think he was regretting letting everyone share the Firebolt. "Great actually. It's good to see everyone enjoying themselves."

"Yeah," said Ron thoughtfully. "Weird though, isn't it? I mean, I didn't think I'd see the day when Slytherin's and Gryffindor's actually have friendly conversations with one another."

Harry smiled wryly. "Neither did I. In fact, I think I've exchanged at least a couple of friendly words with all of them by now."

Ron raised an eyebrow. "So you're not including the Ferret in that then?"

Harry nodded. "I am actually. He thanked me when I gave him his wand back. Well, mumbled. But, considering the fact that it's Malfoy, that's probably the nicest conversation we've ever had."

Ron sniggered. "That's true. I notice Malfoy isn't here today – probably thinks he's too good to spend any time with us."

Harry's head whipped round as he scanned the group of eighth years, who were standing a little way off. He watched as Pansy Parkinson flew rather unsteadily down to the ground, jumping off the broom and handing it to Lavender Brown. Harry strained his eyes, but nowhere could he see any white-blond hair amongst the group.

"No," he said slowly. "He's definitely not there."

"That's what I just said," said Ron, sounding rather puzzled. He began to make his way back over to the group. "Come on, let's head back over before they break the Firebolt."

Harry followed him, his brow creased. Malfoy _loved_ flying – why hadn't he jumped at the chance of flying a Firebolt? Although, thought Harry dully, he probably already had a Firebolt back at home – he probably thought it was nothing special.

Harry pushed Draco to the back of his mind, slightly disconcerted that he cared about where his enemy was anyway. Well, ex-enemy. He certainly didn't like Draco, but he didn't truly hate him anymore.

The day passed quickly, far too quickly according to the eighth years. When lunch time came, Dean and Seamus returned to Hogwarts to bring some food back down to the Quidditch pitch for everyone. After they had finished eating, they went back to flying the Firebolt endlessly around the grounds. Harry knew it would be covered in multiple finger marks, possibly even scratches, but he didn't care. He was having fun, and everyone else was having fun. That was all that mattered.

The sky was beginning to darken by the time they decided to return to the castle. It was then that Harry caught sight of something behind a wall. Turning, he caught sight of it again. A flash of white-blond hair.

Exactly why Malfoy was out here, watching the group flying, and not joining in, left Harry bemused. Eventually he followed the others back up to the castle, deciding that Malfoy could do what he wanted. He didn't want to have anything to do with him, after all.

**A/N: I know this is quite short, but I'm trying to kind of set the scene with this chapter. Hope it was okay anyway! I'll really appreciate any reviews! :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thanks a lot to the people who reviewed the last chapter! :) I really, really appreciate it.**

"What have we got first today?" Ron asked Harry, his red hair tousled as he slid into a seat next to him in the Great Hall. Harry dived into his bag, pulling out his timetable.

"Potions," he said, sighing heavily and dropping the timetable back into his bag. Potions was marginally better now that Snape was no longer there, but Harry still found it hard to like the subject. It was much harder now he didn't have the Half-Blood Prince to help him.

Ron pulled several slices of toast towards him, grabbing a nearby pot of strawberry jam and beginning to spread it enthusiastically on each slice of toast.

Harry was distracted from his thoughts by Hermione, who sat down opposite him and Ron. "Morning," she said brightly, smiling at Harry and shaking her head at Ron, who was now munching on the toast with gusto.

"_Honestly,_ Ron…"

Ron looked up indignantly, opening his mouth to speak before thinking better of it, closing it again before he choked on the toast and ended up spitting it out all over the table. Harry shook his head in amusement – some things would never change.

"Hi Harry," came a voice from behind him.

Harry glanced round and found himself face to face with Ginny. "Hi," he said, smiling at her. "How are you? I haven't spoken to you for a while."

"I'm fine," said Ginny, her eyes searching Harry's face. "But how are _you?"_

"Fine," said Harry, shrugging.

Ginny nodded slowly, glancing down the table to where one of her friends was frantically beckoning to her to come over. "I'd better go – I guess you'll need to get to class. See you soon." She smiled at Harry and the others, before continuing down the hall, sitting down next to her friend.

Harry bit his lip, uncomfortably aware of Ron and Hermione's eyes on him. He still felt guilty about breaking up with Ginny, but on the other hand, it had left him feeling wonderfully free and open, now that he had told Ron, Hermione and Ginny the full truth: he was gay.

At first, Harry had found it hard to come to terms with this, as he had always pictured himself with Ginny, marrying her and starting a family, and it was hard to realise that he was never going to do that. But it was gradually getting easier to accept, and his friends, including Ginny, had been wonderfully supportive of him, although he and Ginny had been rather awkward around one another ever since. He was still unsure about how the rest of the school would react if they heard the news though, never mind the rest of the wizarding world.

He was jerked out of his thoughts by Ron, who was choking on the toast. He automatically reached out a hand, thumping him on the back as Ron's face began to match his hair, rapidly getting redder and redder, his eyes streaming.

Hermione pointed her wand at Ron, and his coughs subsided almost immediately. "Thanks," he gasped to Hermione as he rubbed his eyes, swallowing a few times.

"Let's get to class," said Hermione wearily. Harry hid a smile as he stood up, glancing casually around the hall as he did so.

Almost mechanically, his eyes met Draco Malfoy's, sitting over at the Slytherin table. Draco had been wearing an expression of vague amusement, but the smile vanished as soon as he met Harry's eyes. The two boys stared at one another for a few seconds before Harry gave him a faint smile, which he could have sworn Malfoy returned.

As he followed Ron and Hermione from the hall, he frowned, deep in thought. He couldn't get rid of the image of Malfoy in his head, when he had first looked at him. Why had Malfoy looked as though something funny had happened? Under normal circumstances, Harry would have put it down to one of his friends perhaps making an amusing remark, however, it seemed as though Malfoy had been looking at him, Ron and Hermione _before_ Harry had seen him, so he must have been laughing at something one of them had done. Of course, Harry realised, he would be laughing about Ron choking on his toast. That was exactly the kind of thing Malfoy would find funny. Although he didn't seem to be laughing about it in a mean way, or sneering in the same way he would have done when he was younger…

"Harry?"

Harry glanced at Hermione, who was watching him with a faint frown on her face. "Sorry, what were you saying?" he asked distractedly.

Hermione sighed. "I was asking you about the Charms homework. Whether you'd done it," she added, in case Harry thought that _she_ hadn't done it, and was asking him for help.

"Yeah, I've done it, I did it last night," said Harry, focusing back in on the conversation.

"Well, _Ronald_ has not," said Hermione, fixing Ron with a stern look.

"I was busy!" Ron protested feebly. Harry sighed and prepared himself to have to listen to an argument between his two best friends for the next few hours.

Xxx

"_Draco?"_

Draco turned round irritably. "What now, Pansy?"

Pansy pouted. "I was only going to ask you if everything was all right. You've been staring at Potter and his friends for ages now."

"Yes," said Draco, wracking his brains for an excuse, "because Weasley's choking."

Pansy glanced over to where Weasley was spluttering and gasping, smiling slightly as Potter began to bang him on the back.

"Hello Draco, Pansy," said Theodore Nott, as he sat down in between the two of them.

"Hi, Theo," Draco replied, tearing his eyes away from the Gryffindor table.

"What are you two staring at?" Theo asked in mild interest.

"Oh, Weasley was choking on his breakfast," said Pansy, standing up. "I'll see you two later – I have to speak to Slughorn about something."

"Bye," said Draco, already glancing back at Potter without realising it. It was as though Harry was a magnet and his eyes were constantly drawn to him: he couldn't help it. It both angered and frustrated him at the same time that he could stare at Harry for ages, but still couldn't bring himself to talk to him. The idea of simply walking up to Harry and starting a friendly conversation with him made his heart twist in embarrassment. He owed so much to Harry, despite the fact that he had been so horrible to him throughout their time at Hogwarts, plus there was the uncomfortable fact that…well, he didn't even want to think about it anymore. In fact, he thought miserably, it would be best if he simply tried to erase the whole thing from his mind. It would only upset him more if-

"You all right Draco?"

Theo's voice pierced Draco's thoughts. He nodded vaguely, pinning a smile onto his face as he continued to watch Potter…

For a second, it felt as though his heart had frozen._ Harry was looking directly at him._

Draco stared back at him for what seemed like forever, before Harry's lips flickered into a faint smile. Draco inhaled sharply, before smiling weakly back.

As he watched Harry leave the hall, he felt strangely elated. All they had done was smile at one another, and it hadn't been a particularly wide smile, but it didn't stop the now genuine smile spreading across his face as he gazed at the door that Harry had just vanished through.

**A/N: I'm kind of starting to have second thoughts about this story, and I'm beginning to consider deleting from Fanfiction and maybe working on it a bit more before reposting it? Any opinions on that will be welcome! **


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: So I have decided not to delete this! Thank you for the reviews – they made me feel much better about this fic! :D**

"We're having a change in seating today," Slughorn told the assembled pupils almost as soon as they had entered the class. "I want to try and mix it up every so often, so you'll all have the chance to work with new people." He pointed to a desk in the corner. "Miss Brown and Mr Goldstein, these will be your new seats…"

Harry waited for his name to be called out as Slughorn showed people to their seats. He didn't know whether to feel relieved or slightly... _disappointed?_ when Draco Malfoy was put next to a wary looking Terry Boot.

"…and over here, we will have Mr Potter and Mr Nott," said Slughorn, pointing at a desk in the corner of the room. Harry sat down, eyeing Nott cautiously. Theo looked just as apprehensive, watching Harry carefully.

The lesson begun, and for the first part of it, both boys remained silent, chopping up the various ingredients they needed for their potions, and keeping their heads down. However, about half way through the lesson, Theo spoke quietly.

"Thank you, Harry."

Harry looked up sharply. Theo hadn't stopped slicing his newt's tails, but he had definitely slowed his movements down slightly, his head partially raised as he waited for Harry's reply.

"Thanks," said Harry awkwardly. He paused. "Did Malfoy put you up to this?"

Theo met his eyes for the first time that lesson. There was definite surprise in his face, mingled with an indiscernible sadness Harry couldn't quite place.

"No," Theo said. "No, he didn't." He hesitated, rapidly putting down his knife. "He's not like that anymore, you know. He changed. We all changed. But Draco…well, he's hardly the same person now as he was before."

Harry nodded slowly, unable to imagine a nice Draco Malfoy.

"I mean," Theo continued, "the war was pretty hard on him. It would probably be impossible to go through all that he did without changing somehow."

"You're right," Harry admitted.

Theo took a deep breath. "Do you blame Draco for anything? You know, for…for doing what he did."

"No," said Harry at once. "I still don't like him, but I don't blame him for any of the choices that he made, or anything like that. He was forced to make those choices, after all."

Theo gave a single nod, a thoughtful expression on his face as he picked up his knife and got back to work.

Xxx

"Hi, Draco," said Theo vaguely, dumping his school bag on the floor and rifling through it, clearly searching for something.

"Hello," Draco replied coolly.

Theo glanced over at him. "You all right Draco?"

Draco glared at him. "Oh, _I'm_ fine," he snapped. "How are _you?_ How was _Potions?"_ he added, unable to keep the jealousy out of his voice.

Theo frowned. "Draco, ever since you've arrived back here you've been trying to avoid Harry, and now here you are sulking because you aren't sitting next to him in Potions!"

Draco scowled. "Don't rub it in."

Theo's face softened. "I'm not trying to rub it in Draco, honestly."

Draco said nothing.

"I can put one of your worries at rest now, at least," said Theo, flicking through a book.

Draco glanced at him, a frown on his face. "What do you mean?"

"Harry doesn't blame you for anything that happened," said Theo, pulling out a quill from his bag. "So you can stop panicking about that, or using it as an excuse not to talk to him."

Draco's eyes widened, his heart beginning to flutter madly_. "Really?_ Theo, are you _sure_ that's what he said?"

Theo laughed. "You sound like Pansy. But yes," he added as he noted the look of anxiety on Draco's face, "that is definitely what he said."

Draco felt stunned. He had spent sleepless nights worrying over what Potter might think of him, running over lists of cruel names he had been so sure that Potter would be calling him in his head, and now it turned out that maybe, just maybe, Potter didn't hate him that much after all. He felt his mood rising swiftly.

"Draco?"

Theo's voice cut Draco's thoughts like a knife. He glanced towards his friend, his brow knitted in a frown.

"Will you ever consider telling him?" Theo's voice was quiet, measured, yet undoubtedly curious. "That you've been in love with him since you were eleven, I mean?"

"No!" said Draco sharply. "I would never tell him that. Can you imagine how he'd react? He may not hate me, but he doesn't _like_ me!"

Theo shrugged. "I know. I was just wondering…I mean, now the two of you will_ have_ to talk to one another!"

Draco looked up sharply. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Professor McGonagall wants to see you in her office," was all Theo said, with the ghost of a smile. "But I think I already know what it is about."

Draco, scowling at Theo for being such a _Slytherin,_ heaved himself to his feet and left the dorm, angrily berating Theo in his head for waiting so long to tell him. He was well aware that this could be important, and speeded up his walk as he approached McGonagall's office, fighting down the tide of nerves as he knocked on the door.

"Come in," he heard McGonagall say briskly.

He entered, closing the door behind him. McGonagall was sitting behind her desk, holding a long quill and writing what looked like a letter; however, she laid these things to the side as Draco sat down, twisting his hands nervously on his lap.

McGonagall eyed him beadily for a few seconds, before her face broke into a smile. Draco, who had never seen the stern professor smile before, felt a flash of surprise; however, this was soon overcome by a rush of relief. It couldn't be anything too bad if she was _smiling_ at him.

"You've been doing very well, I hear," she was telling him, surprisingly kind. "The teachers are all pleased with you, and you appear to be getting on relatively well with everyone. How would you say you are doing?"

"Er, fine, I guess," Draco mumbled. _What was the real reason he was here? _He couldn't have been called to the Headmistress' office just to talk about his school year, could he?

McGonagall seemed to read his thoughts. "Draco, I have called you here because you happen to be the best in this whole year at Potions." Before Draco could ponder over this unexpected compliment, she continued: "Harry Potter, however, is not doing so well. I called you here to ask you if you would consent to giving him private lessons? Maybe helping him with his homework? I know you will be shocked that I am asking you this, but I feel that this will be good, for both of you."

Draco's insides froze. "I…" he stuttered. "I don't think…"

"Draco, when I was talking about how it would be good for you both, I wasn't just talking from the point of view of potions," said McGonagall quietly.

"But there must be someone else in the year who is good at Potions!" said Draco wildly. "What about Hermione Granger? She's friends with Potter, can't she he-"

"No!" McGonagall interrupted, back to her usual sharp tones. "You happen to be just as good at Potions as Miss Granger is, and, as I've already said twice, this arrangement is for the best."

Draco opened his mouth in despair, but McGonagall had already stood up and opened the door, indicating for him to leave her office. "You will start helping him tomorrow," she told him as he walked out as slowly as he could. "Good luck." She shut the door firmly, leaving a shaken and mortified Draco in the corridor outside.

As he began to make his way along the corridor, his heart thumping madly, he wondered whether to feel pleased at this request, or simply horrified.

**A/N: Hope this was okay! :) I'm always grateful for any reviews!**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Thank you SO much to the people who reviewed the last chapter! I really, really appreciate it. :)**

**Hope this chapter is okay!**

"What did Professor McGonagall want?"

Harry looked at Hermione who was curled up in a comfy armchair, engrossed in a book. "Draco Malfoy is going to give me private lessons for Potions," he said dully.

The book fell to the floor with a thud as Hermione stared up at him in shock. "You…_really?"_

"Yes," said Harry heavily, sinking into a seat beside her, "really."

Hermione was silent for a few seconds, struggling to come to terms with the news. "It…it shouldn't be too bad," she said weakly.

Harry rolled his eyes. "Of course not. It will be great fun."

"I didn't say it would be _fun,"_ said Hermione. "But it won't be _terrible_. It will be better than it would have been before."

Harry shook his head, unconvinced. "He's going to love the fact that I'm so bad at Potions. I won't hear the end of it."

"If it was the old Draco, maybe," said Hermione, bending down to pick up her book. At least it distracted her from the conversation for a few seconds as she smoothed down the crumpled pages in evident concern. Harry sighed wearily.

"I really can't be bothered with this. Stuck with _him, _trying to teach me Potions…"

"Look, Harry," said Hermione consolingly, reaching forward and taking his hand, "Draco has changed now. He isn't the same person as he used to be – you've admitted that yourself!"

"Yes, I know," said Harry impatiently. "But that does _not_ mean that I suddenly want to spend time with him."

"What's this?" asked Ron from behind them. Harry assumed he had just entered the common room, as he certainly hadn't been there before. "Why is my girlfriend holding my best mate's hand?"

"You can tell him, Hermione," said Harry heavily, rising to his feet. "I'm off to bed."

Xxx

It was a few days after Harry had received the news about the lessons that he and Draco finally spoke to one another. It was Draco who made the first move, approaching him one evening when Harry was alone, sitting in the corner of the common room and frantically trying to do his Charms, Transfiguration and Defence against the Dark Arts homework at the same time. Harry could see the blonde advancing out of the corner of his eye, and raised his head to look at him, fixing a bright smile to his face and deciding that he might as well be civil. Draco stared at him for a few seconds as he came to a halt in front of him, an expression of bewilderment crossing his face before he altered it into a tentative smile in return.

"Well," said Draco, clearing his throat, "I, er, I was going to ask you about those lessons…" His voice trailed off, his pale cheeks flooding with colour as he shifted nervously on the spot.

"Oh, yeah," said Harry, putting down his Charms textbook. "Well, why don't we arrange to meet this Friday for a lesson? We could meet in…well, where are we supposed to be having these lessons?"

Draco blinked. "I…in one of the Potions classroom, I think."

"Right," said Harry, mentally cursing himself for being so stupid. Where else did he think they were going to meet? He glanced up at Draco, who was biting his lip nervously. "I'll see you there, then," Draco said in a rush.

"See you," Harry replied, watching him as he turned and hurried over to Theodore Nott, walking as though he couldn't get away faster.

Xxx

Harry reluctantly pushed open the door of the classroom, feeling a rush of uncertainty mingled with a strange sense of nerves. Draco was sitting inside, a large amount of books spread out in front of him.

Harry cleared his throat to announce his presence and Draco spun round in the chair. "There you are!" he burst out.

"Yeah..." said Harry, eyeing Draco with caution. "Er, sorry I'm late, I couldn't find the room. I kept going into all the wrong rooms, you see…" He stopped, aware that he was babbling.

The corners of Draco's mouth twitched. "It's okay." He turned away to rearrange the books in front of him, fidgeting in his chair.

Harry moved over to sit beside him without much enthusiasm. It was Friday evening, and the last place he wanted to be was stuck in a Potions classroom with Draco Malfoy. He watched as Draco placed the books carefully in a pile, with a strange suspicion that Draco was trying to take as much time as possible, to put off the moment when he would have to speak to Harry.

"So, what are we going to do, then?" asked Harry briskly, unable to stand the silence any longer.

Draco jumped slightly, as though he hadn't expected to hear Harry's voice and had forgotten that he was with someone else. "Well, I thought that we would look over these books, about the Potion of Dreams that we're practising in class now. That is, if you don't understand it?"

"No, I don't really," said Harry awkwardly.

A few years ago, Draco would have sneered at this and probably made some snarky comment before spreading the news around the school that Harry was terrible at Potions. Now, however, he merely nodded and smiled a genuine, friendly smile, which Harry didn't think he'd ever seen cross his face. It was strange how much nicer Draco looked when he smiled like that, instead of sneering or smirking like he usually did. _Or_ _used to_, Harry corrected himself.

"Anyway, we need to look over this," said Draco, passing a book across the table to Harry. "I asked Slughorn and he said it would be helpful. You'd have seen it before, of course…"

Harry nodded, resisting the urge to sigh with difficulty. He had seen this book many times, unfortunately. It was a complicated and boring book Slughorn had given to every member of the class, which was supposed to help them with their homework. Sadly, only Hermione seemed able to decipher what it was the book was actually asking you to do, as there were many words in it that no one had heard before, and the print was so small you had to strain your eyes to read it.

Draco seemed to read Harry's thoughts. He met Harry's eyes across the table and smiled slightly. "I know it's boring."

Harry smiled back. "Yeah, _very_ boring. The only person I know who likes it is Hermione."

Draco laughed nervously. "She's clever though. She strikes me as one of those types of people who will read anything you put in front of them."

"Definitely!" said Harry feverishly. "I think she's probably read every book in the library by now. She's great at doing research."

Draco's smile widened. He appeared unable to believe the fact that he was having an actual, civil conversation with Harry. Harry himself couldn't blame him, as he felt exactly the same way.

"So you and your other friends don't like studying?" said Draco.

Harry shook his head. "You mean Ron?"

Draco nodded, twisting his hands together in evident discomfort. "Yeah, him. Ron," he added slowly, as though trying to get used to saying the name.

"So, do you understand any of this book?" asked Harry, indicating the book lying in front of him.

"A bit," said Draco uncomfortably. "Not really, though. Hermione probably understands it better than I do." He said Hermione's name tentatively, rather like he had just said Ron's name, almost as though he was afraid of saying it.

"I don't mind if you don't understand it completely," said Harry honestly. "It's quite an achievement to understand any of it at _all,_ to be honest."

Draco's cheeks coloured slightly, and he cleared his throat. "Well, shall…shall we get on?"

Harry nodded, feeling remarkably more comfortable compared to a few minutes ago. At least Draco hadn't mocked or jeered at him yet; in fact, he had actually been quite nice so far. Harry couldn't quite get his head around a friendly Draco Malfoy, but it was certainly better than the alternative.

The rest of the time passed relatively quickly. To Harry's surprise, he got on with Draco much better than he had expected. Of course, they weren't talking much about anything other than Potions, but it was a definite improvement compared to what Harry had been expecting. He left feeling quite cheerful, and there was a spring in his step as he nodded goodbye to Draco and left to go in search of Ron and Hermione. Yes, he and Draco weren't best friends, and never would be, but Harry hoped that they might at least be able to get through these lessons without any major arguments. Hopefully.

**A/N: The Drarry will soon begin, in case you're wondering when it will start! :) As always, I'll really appreciate any reviews!**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: If you reviewed the last chapter, thank you! :)**

"How was it?" Pansy's anxious eyes scanned Draco's face, as Theo, standing next to her, watched Draco enquiringly.

Draco couldn't help but smile. "It…wasn't too bad. Quite good, actually."

"_Good?"_ Pansy repeated blankly.

"Yeah. I mean, we actually managed to have a conversation with one another, and we didn't argue once," said Draco, shrugging. He was careful not to display any emotion on his face, aware that if Pansy knew how pleased he was, she would continue to question him about his "feelings" for Harry, and if there was one thing Draco hated, it was talking about his feelings. He turned away from her and met Theo's eyes.

"So it was better than you thought?" said Theo tentatively.

Draco simply nodded, and made his way over to the corner of the common room, pulling his bag on to his lap and rifling through it in search of his Arithmacy textbook, thus putting an end to the conversation.

Xxx

The next lesson took place about a week later. This time they were practising brewing the Potion of Dreams, which Harry decided was definitely more interesting than last time. Draco had already set everything up when Harry entered and the two of them had got to work straight away.

"You need to use this knife to cut the ingredients," Draco told him, handing him a short knife, which Harry took with trepidation. "Er…" His voice trailed off as he looked down at his cauldron, biting his lip awkwardly. Harry could tell he felt uncomfortable and slightly self-conscious giving him instructions like this, and couldn't blame him.

"You all right?" he asked casually.

"Yeah," said Draco quickly. "Course. Just thinking, that's all."

Harry nodded in understanding, deciding not to push the matter any further. "So what do I need to do?"

Once Draco had told him what to do, the next few minutes passed in almost complete silence as they worked. In the end, Harry couldn't stand it anymore.

"So," he began, noting Draco's slightly startled expression as he turned to look at him. "What other things are you good at, besides Potions? And Quidditch," he added as an afterthought.

Draco looked rather bewildered at this question, but it was the best Harry could think of. "I…I'm not sure really," he said curtly, shrugging his shoulders in apparent indifference.

"Right," Harry replied awkwardly. "Do you…do you still enjoy playing Quidditch, then?"

Draco shrugged again. "It's okay." There was something in his voice that made Harry look at him in curiosity.

"I noticed you didn't come and fly with us, a few weeks back," he said carefully. "You'd be welcome to, you know."

"Thanks, but I would rather not," said Draco abruptly. He kept his head bowed, hiding his face from Harry.

"But if you-"

"I don't want to talk about it!" Draco's voice rose harshly. "Please just leave it."

"Okay, I'm sorry," said Harry swiftly, not wanting the two of them to get into an argument. That would be too much like the old days, which Harry had hoped they had moved on from. To his relief, Draco simply nodded and remained silent, continuing with his work as though Harry wasn't there.

A few minutes later, Harry attempted to make conversation again. "So, what's your favourite subject besides Potions?"

Draco glanced up at him, frowning slightly. "Not sure, although I quite like Arithmacy," he said eventually. "What's yours?"

"Defence against the Dark Arts," Harry replied promptly.

Draco smiled slightly. "Of course. You were thirteen when you could produce a Patronus charm, weren't you?"

Harry nodded. "What's your Patronus?"

"Can't make one," said Draco quietly.

"Oh." Harry wracked his brains for something to say next, all the while trying to supress a flicker of sympathy for Draco. It couldn't have been nice last year; having thousands of Dementors floating around and knowing you couldn't even defend yourself against them. He glanced at Draco, who gave a small, wry smile. "I know it's pathetic…" he began.

"It's not!" Harry interrupted. "In fact, in return for these Potions lessons, why don't_ I_ teach you how to produce a Patronus?" The words spilled out of him in a rush; he was barely aware of what he was saying.

Draco stared at him in amazement. "I…" he said nervously. "You…"

"It's all right," said Harry quickly, feeling a rush of mortification. "I don't mind if you don't want to-"

"No," said Draco hastily. "I'd like that. It's just…I know it won't work."

"Why?" asked Harry.

"Because don't you need to think of something happy to produce a Patronus?" At Harry's nod, he burst out, "Well, what am_ I_ supposed to think of?"

Harry felt slightly surprised. "I…"

"I can't think of_ anything_ happy in my life, especially not during the last few years!"

Harry looked at him, shocked at the outburst. Draco's grey eyes were filled with distress and he looked so miserable that Harry couldn't help himself.

He stepped impulsively towards Draco, holding out his hand. "Let's be friends."

"_What?" _

"Let's be friends," Harry repeated.

Draco stared at him, wide-eyed. Harry stared back, willing him just to take his hand…

He felt a rush of relief as Draco stepped forward and shook his hand, his unhappy expression replaced by a faint, slightly stunned, smile, which was beginning to spread slowly across his face, growing wider and wider. "Okay," he said. "Friends."

Xxx

"Harry? Is everything all right? _Harry?"_

Ron thumped him on the back and Harry jumped, turning to face Hermione, who looked as though she was torn between frowning and smiling.

"I've been trying to get your attention for ages!" she said. "What's wrong? You've been in a dream all day!"

"I'm fine," said Harry in what he hoped was a convincing tone.

"You _have_ been a little bit distant, mate," said Ron, stabbing a potato enthusiastically with his fork. "Is this about Malfoy?"

"No! What makes you think it's about him?" said Harry quickly.

"Well, for a start, you've been staring at him ever since we sat down for dinner," said Hermione, rolling her eyes although her tone was faintly amused. "And you've been talking about him all day."

"I have not!" said Harry indignantly as, next to him, Ron sniggered.

"You have been ever since you got back from the lesson," he pointed out.

"Yes, because I still can't believe we're friends, that's all!" Harry protested. "Becoming friends with someone you've hated for seven years is quite a big deal, you know."

"We know," said Hermione at once. "And I'm pleased you are friends with him, even of Ron isn't."

"I will be!" said Ron indignantly. "I still need to come to terms with the idea, that's all!"

Harry couldn't help but smile. Ron and Hermione had been surprisingly supportive when he had told them that he was now friends with Draco Malfoy, although they had initially been shocked. However, Harry had expected that – he was just relieved that they weren't disgusted or angry, which was what he had been dreading.

He hadn't yet told them about the "Quidditch problem," which was what he had come to think of it as in his head, nor what Draco had said about the Patronus charm, and the fact that he didn't think he would have a happy enough memory to produce one…

Harry wasn't entirely sure why he cared, but he couldn't help it. He hadn't really considered what the last two years would have been like for Draco, but now that he thought about it, he knew that they would have been horrible – frightening and probably almost as bad for Draco as they had been for Harry. As he watched the back of Draco's sleek, blond head now, he felt a surge of pity, something he had never thought he'd feel towards Draco Malfoy.

"_Harry?_ You're doing it again!"

Harry's head snapped towards Hermione. "Sorry, I-"

"No need to apologise," Hermione said hastily. "I'm just curious, that's all."

Harry nodded, before turning back to his dinner. If he had looked at Hermione for a moment longer, he would have noticed the strange expression that came upon her face as her eyes flickered between him and Draco.

**A/N: Hope you liked it! As always, I'm really grateful for any reviews :)**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: I'm sorry for the wait – I know it's been a while since I've updated this! I've been suffering from a bit of writers block on this fic, but I have the rest of it planned out now, so I will definitely be updating this more frequently. **

"So what do I do?"

"Well, first you need to think of something happy," Harry explained. "A happy memory."

Draco screwed up his face in concentration. "I…I think I have one," he said eventually.

"Great!" said Harry with a forced brightness, noting Draco's nervous expression. "Try to relax – if your memory is good enough, you'll be fine."

Draco nodded jerkily. "If you say so."

Harry hesitated. "If you don't feel _happy, _it probably won't work. Does your memory make you feel truly happy?"

Draco shrugged. "Happy enough," he said abruptly.

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, but what is it?" Harry asked.

Draco sighed heavily. "My father praising me when I was five. I had just learnt how to fly – that was one of the few times he actually seemed _proud_ of me."

Harry looked at him. "I'm not sure if that will be strong enough," he said tentatively.

Draco laughed bitterly. "Well it'll have to do, because I can't think of any other ones. At least not right now."

Harry felt strangely sad. "You know, Draco, your life shouldn't revolve around receiving recognition or praise from your family." He was surprised at how gentle his voice was.

Draco swallowed. "I never said that my _life_ did. But I know that getting praise from my father shouldn't bother me as much as it does. It was worse when I was younger," he added slightly defensively, "I cared about it much more back then."

"I know," said Harry quietly. As his green eyes met Draco's grey ones, his heart fluttered slightly and he felt a strange feeling – a feeling he knew he had felt before. A feeling he had used to feel back in sixth year, whenever he caught sight of Ginny…

_No,_ he thought at once, feeling a rush of panic. _No! I know I'm gay, but not…_

"Harry?"

At the sound of Draco cautiously saying his name, he pushed the disturbing thought to the back of his mind, cursing himself for being such an _idiot,_ and forced a smile onto his face. "Sorry, I was thinking of…something else. What were we saying?"

"We were talking about my memory," Draco replied cautiously, eyeing Harry with suspicion. "For the Patronus."

"Oh, right," said Harry, rubbing his head wearily. "Look, why don't we just continue with this lesson tomorrow?"

Draco nodded in relief, grabbing his bag. "I think that will be best, to be honest. See you later," he said, heading towards the door.

Harry watched him go, his heart rate speeding up as Draco smiled at him as he exited from the room. As soon as he was out of sight, Harry groaned and had to resist the urge to kick something. Why was he suddenly feeling like this? Those feelings had been so _abrupt_ – he had slowly been starting to like Draco, but not in _that_ way! He shook his head firmly, taking a deep breath. It was impossible to suddenly develop a crush on someone who you had hated for years! In fact, the thought that he liked _Draco Malfoy_ of all people was so ridiculous that it was almost funny.

He was reading into it too much, Harry decided. His heart had fluttered slightly when Draco had looked at him – that was no reason to instantly assume that he had a crush on him! He held his head up high as he left the room, deciding to dismiss this whole strange incident from his mind.

Xxx

"Are you alright, Harry?" Hermione asked in concern. "You've been awfully quiet ever since you got back from teaching Draco the Patronus charm – are you sure he didn't say anything to you?"

"No," said Harry wearily. "I've told you Hermione, I'm just tired."

"So was it okay with Draco?" Hermione asked him, watching him carefully.

Harry nodded. "Of course. It was fine. I mean, he still hasn't mastered the Patronus-"

"I meant between the two of you," Hermione interrupted. "You seem to be getting along well."

"We are, surprisingly," said Harry, smiling despite himself. "He's quite nice now."

"Yes, you seem to be becoming quite good friends," said Hermione casually.

Harry frowned. "Well, yes, I suppose we are. But what are you trying to say, exactly?"

"Nothing!" said Hermione in surprise. "I'm just glad you're both friends now, that's all."

Harry nodded slowly. "Well, it's definitely better than me and Draco fighting one another."

Hermione laughed. _"Much_ better."

"Yes," Harry replied distractedly, suddenly aware that Draco himself had entered the common room. "Err, Hermione, I…I think I might go to bed now, I'm exhausted…" He got to his feet without waiting for a reply, keeping his eyes focused on Draco.

Hermione narrowed her eyes, slowly following his gaze over to where Draco was sitting, curled up in an armchair, a large book on his lap.

"Harry, what happened with Draco today?" she asked quietly.

"Nothing!" said Harry sharply. "Nothing at all."

"But you-"

"Look Hermione, I want to go to bed, alright?"

"Goodnight," said Hermione with a sigh, watching him leave in suspicion. Her eyes travelled over to Draco, where she was surprised to see that he was also watching Harry, his lips curling into a slight smile.

Hermione turned away from him, now beginning to wonder, properly wonder, if her theory about them was actually true.

**A/N: I'm sorry that this chapter wasn't very long or very good – I just wanted to give you an update, as I guessed some people might be wondering if I had abandoned this fic, and I wanted to update it so I could tell you all that I haven't.**

**I would appreciate reviews! :)**


	7. Chapter 7

The weeks passed and, with them, a few things changed. Draco was still unable to produce a Patronus charm, although he was slowly getting better, and he and Harry remained good friends. Their friendship wasn't without disagreements and arguments, but they were rare, and if Harry was honest with himself, he didn't really mind them. He quite liked the fact that Draco was one of the few people who was actually able to challenge him – it was refreshing, after having to put up with most people in the school worshipping him.

The one thing that was really puzzling Harry was Hermione, who seemed to be acting stranger and stranger as the days wore on. He often caught her giving him oddly furtive glances, usually when he and Draco were together, which he still couldn't understand – the only thing he knew for certain was that it was to do with Draco.

_I wish she wouldn't do it._

He was already uncomfortable enough around Draco, and having Hermione around only increased his discomfort. His feelings for Draco seemed to change every day – one day he felt sure that he only liked Draco as a friend, and the next day his heart would leap whenever Draco looked in his direction. The whole thing, he had decided, was mad. There was no other word for it. The fact that he was even considering the possibility of falling in love with someone he had used to hate, someone he had always looked on as an enemy, was crazy.

Harry winced as he replayed the words back in his head. _Falling in love. _He felt his cheeks flood with colour – he had never thought of it like that. If there was anything in his 'feelings' towards Draco, it was simply a fleeting crush, certainly not love-

"Harry, are you okay?" Hermione's voice broke his thoughts.

He nodded impatiently, not in the mood for a conversation.

Hermione sighed. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing!" said Harry defensively. "I'm just…worrying about the exams, that's all."

One look from Hermione told him that she didn't believe him. "You've not been yourself recently-" she began.

"Well, neither have you!" Harry protested. "You've been giving me weird looks for the last couple of weeks, for no apparent reason."

Hermione hesitated. "I've just been wondering about something, that's all. Trying to work something out."

"Something to do with me," Harry stated, unimpressed. "You know Hermione; it isn't really your business-"

"I know," Hermione interrupted, biting her lip. "Look, Harry, it doesn't matter, it-"

"No," Harry interrupted. "Tell me. If it's about me, I think I have the right to know."

"That's true," Hermione admitted, shifting awkwardly in her seat, "but I also think-"

"What do you think?" Ron lowered himself into the chair beside Hermione, his red hair tousled and face flushed.

"What happened to you?" Hermione asked, staring at him.

"Oh, I accidentally stood on Filch's cat's tail," said Ron, waving a hand dismissively. "I had to run before he caught me. Anyway, what were you saying?"

"It doesn't matter," said Hermione, standing up and flashing Harry a meaningful look. "We'll talk later – I have to go and ask Professor Sprout something."

Harry watched her leave with a feeling of frustration, mingled with panic. He knew that it was something to do with him and Draco – had Hermione guessed his thoughts about him? He groaned aloud, forgetting Ron was there.

"You alright, mate?" Ron asked, watching him quizzically.

"Fine," Harry sighed, getting to his feet. "Look, I need to go and, err, get a book from the library for Potions, so I'll see you soon, yeah?"

"Okay," Ron replied, frowning slightly. "I didn't even know we had Potions homework!"

"Yes, we do," said Harry quickly, cursing himself inwardly. "Or, I do at least, because I'm falling behind, you know…."

Ron's face cleared and he nodded, pulling his school bag onto his lap and beginning to rifle through it, evidently searching for a piece of homework he still hadn't done, probably the Charms homework due in tomorrow, Harry thought with faint amusement.

He headed out of the common room, intending to hunt Hermione down. Although it turned out that she wasn't in the library, he decided that he might as well wait there for her, as she would probably be along soon. It was virtually impossible to keep Hermione away from the library for more than a minute.

Someone tapped him on the shoulder and he spun round, finding himself face to face with Draco, who gave a small smile.

"Hello, Harry."

"Hi," said Harry quickly, trying in vain to collect his thoughts. His mind felt as though it had gone numb, which recently seemed to happen whenever he was around Draco. "Err," he began lamely, "what're you doing here?"

"Homework," Draco replied, gesturing towards the table he had been sitting at, covered in books and quills.

Harry laughed despite himself. "How many quills do you need?" There had to be about ten of them lying on the table.

Draco's smile grew. "Quite a lot after making the mistake of buying a pack of quills from Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. They go blunt before I'm even able to write a sentence."

"I'll make sure I don't buy them, then!" said Harry.

"No, I don't think I'll buy them again, somehow," said Draco, sitting down at the table and pulling up a chair next to him. "You can sit here if you want."

Harry sat down, feeling slightly nervous. "I can help you with your homework, if you want," he offered. "I don't have any to do right now."

"You're lucky!" said Draco enviously. "I have _loads."_

The two of them were silent for a few seconds as Draco scribbled down a few words on a piece of what looked like Arithmacy homework.

"When do you next want to help me with the Patronus?" Draco asked, without looking up.

"We'll have another lesson soon-" Harry began, but the rest of the sentence died on his lips as he caught sight of Hermione lowering herself into a seat at a table in the corner of the library, clearly having just arrived there.

"Harry?" said Draco in surprise, raising his head to look at him.

"Sorry, Draco, I just need to go and have a word with Hermione," said Harry quickly, already rising from his seat. "See you in a minute."

"See you," said Draco, lowering his head back down to his essay and adding a few more words to it.

"Hello, Harry," said Hermione vaguely as he reached her. "I thought you were with Draco?"

"I was, but I need to talk to you," said Harry urgently. "Hermione, what were you going to say before Ron came in?"

Hermione shook her head as Harry sat down. "Is this really the best place to discuss it?" she whispered.

Harry nodded impatiently. "Of course it is – we'll whisper. Now, tell me what your theory is about me and Draco."

"You know it's about Draco?" said Hermione in surprise.

"Shut up!" Harry hissed, glancing over to the other side of the library where Draco was sitting, still hard at work. "You don't want him to hear us!"

"Sorry," said Hermione, lowering her voice and looking sheepish. "I doubt he _would_ hear us anyway, as he's miles away after all-"

"Yes, but I don't want anyone else to hear us either!" said Harry, uncomfortably aware that there were a couple of seventh year Slytherin's sitting near them, and both were shooting curious looks over to where he and Hermione were sitting.

Hermione sighed. "For the last few weeks," she began quietly, "I've been wondering whether you and Draco…well, you know, have feelings for each other."

Harry stared at her, feeling nothing but pure shock.

"I haven't told anyone!" said Hermione quickly. "I just wondered about it, that's all."

"But," said Harry faintly, finding his voice at last, "he isn't even gay!"

Hermione smiled ruefully. "I heard him talking to Pansy the other day – they sit in front of me in Arithmacy. Pansy was going on and on about all the 'hot boys' in the room and she said to Draco…" Here Hermione hesitated and took a deep breath. "She said to Draco that it was a shame you weren't here, because if you were, Draco would also have someone to eye up."

Harry spluttered. "Hermione, she_ didn't _say that!"

"She did," Hermione insisted. "Trust me, Harry. She practically screeched it out for the whole class to hear, not that any of them did. I mean, it would be all around the school if they had!"

"Well then," said Harry, his head in a whirl, "she must have been joking!"

"She wasn't," said Hermione quietly. "He went bright red and told her to shut up. Anyway, I've picked up on a lot of other signs that show he likes you-"

"What, have you been spying on him or something?" said Harry indignantly, temporarily forgetting that they were in the middle of a quiet library.

"Don't talk so loudly!" Hermione implored, casting an anxious look over to where Madam Pince was skulking between the shelves.

Harry shook his head, a feeling a dread beginning to take over from the shock. "So, you think that we both have feelings for one another," he said flatly.

Hermione nodded tentatively. "But Harry, what I want to know is,_ do_ you have feelings for him?"

Harry groaned and buried his head in his hands. "I don't know," he said, his voice muffled.

"When did you start wondering if you felt something more?" Hermione asked gently.

Harry raised his head to look at his friend. "Hermione, why aren't you shocked? Or angry?" He shook his head helplessly. "Why are you so_ calm_ about it?"

"Because I know Draco has changed," said Hermione simply. "I mean, I would be lying if I said I wasn't surprised at first, but if I'm honest, I always had an inkling that it would happen. You were so obsessed with him in sixth year and, well, he always wanted to get attention from you, even when he was making fun of you-"

"You always thought it would happen?" Harry stammered.

Hermione nodded. "Anyway," she said, her voice brisk all of a sudden, "what are you going to do about it?"

Harry took a deep breath, trying to pull himself together. "I honestly don't know," he said weakly.

"Well, you don't have to do anything about it if you don't want to," said Hermione. "But you do know that if you need to talk to anyone, you can come to me, don't you?"

Harry smiled weakly. "Thank you Hermione." He shook his head in confusion. "I still can't believe we're talking about this."

"Neither can I, really," Hermione admitted. "But it will all be fine Harry, I promise."

Harry gave a single nod. "I appreciate the support Hermione." He smiled faintly and stood up, glancing over to where Draco was sitting. "I don't know how I can talk to him after having this conversation…" he began in despair.

"Harry," said Hermione firmly, "_it will be fine._ Try not to act as though there is anything different between the two of you-"

"Easy to say," Harry muttered, making his way over to Draco. He glanced round briefly at Hermione, who gave him a supportive smile.

"Hi," said Draco as Harry reached him, glancing up from his work.

"Hi," said Harry, fighting to keep his voice steady as he slowly sat down beside Draco.

Draco frowned. "You okay? You look quite pale."

"I'm fine," said Harry quickly. "Absolutely fine."

"You don't look it," said Draco sceptically.

Harry remembered Hermione's words about Draco eyeing him up and felt a hot flash of embarrassment. Shaking his head, he jumped to his feet. "I…I'm going to lie down for a minute," he gabbled, ashamed with himself for acting like this around Draco, but so overwhelmed by the whole situation he hardly had any control over himself.

Draco got to his feet and followed Harry from the library, looking concerned. "Are you ill Harry?"

Harry shook his head. "Not ill." He turned round and met Draco's eyes, immediately experiencing the now-familiar leap of his heart as he looked directly at the other boy.

Draco frowned. "So what's wrong?"

Harry couldn't move, he couldn't speak, all he could do was stare into the grey eyes in front of him. He could feel himself slowly moving closer, hardly able to think…

Xxx

Hermione entered the common room and headed over to where Ron and Harry were sitting, keeping her eyes focused on Harry, who was hunched over in his seat.

"Harry?" she said tentatively as she reached them.

"Hi," said Harry hoarsely.

"I don't know what's wrong with him," said Ron, answering Hermione's unasked question. "He isn't talking to me."

"I don't think it's anything personal, Ron," said Hermione, noticing the rather put out expression on his face.

Harry rose unsteadily to his feet. "I'm going to bed."

"Look Harry, what's happened?" Ron asked in confusion.

Harry took a deep, steadying breath. "Nothing, I'm tired, that's all." He managed a weak smile, before making his way slowly in the direction of the boy's dormitories.

**A/N: Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed the last chapter :) I always really appreciate getting feedback!**


	8. Chapter 8

"There you are!" Theo exclaimed on entering the dormitory. "I've been looking for you everywhere – where have you been?"

Draco shrugged. "Just in here," he said quietly.

Theo's eyes scanned his face. "Are you okay?" Draco looked even paler than usual, and was wearing an expression that was halfway between bewildered and stunned.

"Err, did something happen?" Theo asked tentatively. "You look a bit…shaken."

Draco looked up. "How did you know? Did Ha- …someone tell you?"

Theo shook his head slowly, mystified. "I could tell by your expression." He moved over to sit on the bed beside Draco, placing a comforting hand on his arm. "What happened?"

"Nothing," said Draco, shaking his head and refusing to meet Theo's eyes.

"Well, something clearly did happen," said Theo calmly. "Is it to do with Harry?"

"It's _nothing!"_ Draco protested, shaking off his hand forcibly and jumping to his feet, glaring at his friend. "Leave it alone, Theo!"

Theo drew back, knowing that it would be pointless to try and get any more information out of Draco when he was in this mood. "I'll be in the common room," he said quietly, before leaving the dorm, much to Draco's relief.

As soon as the door had closed, Draco groaned and collapsed back onto his bed. He had never been so confused in his life. At the same time, he didn't think he'd ever been this _happy_ either, but his feeling of shock seemed to cancel it out.

Harry had kissed him.

He repeated the words in his mind. _Harry had kissed him._

Despite his shock, he couldn't help but laugh out loud. It was almost funny to think about it. Soon however, his mirth vanished when he remembered how Harry had run off after the kiss, and he sighed heavily. He and Harry were going to need to have a long talk tomorrow…

Xxx

"Harry, what is it?" said Ron in concern the following morning. "You look awful."

"Did you sleep at all last night?" Hermione asked anxiously.

Harry shook his head blankly. "No."

"Look, what's going on?" said Ron, clearly bewildered.

"It's nothing!" said Harry sharply. He moved away from his friends before they could question him anymore, but instantly regretted it when he bumped directly into Draco, almost knocking him off his feet.

"I'm sorry!" he blurted out, grabbing Draco's wrist to steady him before their eyes met and he jumped away from the other boy as though he had been burned.

"I…I'll see you later…" he began quickly, already turning away from him.

"No, wait!" In one swift movement, Draco reached out and grasped his hand tightly, pulling him closer. "Harry, we need to talk…"

"I'm sorry," Harry repeated helplessly, his cheeks flooding with colour. "I was just…I was _stupid!_ I don't know what came over me-"

"But I didn't mind!" cried Draco in something akin to despair.

There was a silence as the two of them stared at one another. Harry jumped slightly as a large group of students hurried past them, and turned to look at Draco, his stomach twisting in nerves.

"Come on, we'll go in here to talk," he said reluctantly, pulling Draco into a deserted classroom.

Draco stumbled into the room as Harry shut the door with as much conviction as he could muster. He didn't _want_ to talk to Draco, but he couldn't see a way out of it. He could feel his heart thumping furiously as the two of them stood in the middle of the room, the silence stretching between them, both boys looking anywhere but at one another.

Harry eventually cleared his throat. "Draco, I…I don't know why I did it…" His voice trailed off as he finally met Draco's eyes and experienced the familiar flutter in his stomach.

"I…I meant what I said," said Draco quietly. At Harry's questioning look, he gestured to the door. "Outside, a few seconds ago. I didn't mind. I just want to know _why_ you did it."

Harry took a deep breath. "I had been talking to Hermione," he heard himself say in a rush.

Draco frowned. "I know you were." He paused, a look of comprehension dawning on his face. "Err, what about?"

"You, and me," said Harry quietly, knowing there was no point lying. "She…she asked me if we liked each other – she was going on about something Pansy said in Arithmacy…"

As soon as the words were out of his mouth, he regretted it. However, there was no going back now. Draco's grey eyes widened and he closed them briefly, taking a deep, steadying breath before opening them again.

"It was probably a lie," said Harry quickly, his face burning. "Hermione must have misheard or-"

"She was telling the truth," said Draco quietly.

Harry looked at him in bewilderment and felt a sudden, bizarre desire to laugh - here he was, talking to his former enemy, because he had kissed him. "Really?" he said weakly, shifting uncomfortably on the spot.

"I _do_ like you – I've liked you for years," said Draco in a rush. "I know I was horrible to you, but it was only to get your attention." He smiled faintly. "I was an idiot, I know I was. I was just jealous – I wanted to be your friend, but I knew I would never be anything more to you than a nuisance." He shook his head, beginning to edge towards the door. "I know we can't be friends now…"

"But we _can!"_ Harry interrupted. He shook his head desperately. "Draco, why would I have kissed you yesterday if I didn't like you?" As he said the words, he realised they were true. He _did_ like Draco, and it was time he started admitting it, not just to Draco, but to himself. "It could work-"

"How?" Draco protested weakly, looking close to tears. "We used to _hate_ each other, Harry!"

"We _used_ to," said Harry, his nerves melting away as he took a few steps towards Draco, who didn't step away. "You never know, we might be able to-"

The rest of his words were lost when Draco closed the remaining distance between them and kissed him.

It was gentle and tender and just _wonderful,_ better than kissing Ginny, better than anything Harry had experienced. He kissed Draco back hesitantly, reaching out a hand and threading his fingers through the blonde hair.

_This,_ he thought dazedly, _is perfect-_

The door banged open behind them and they jumped apart, Harry cursing himself inwardly for forgetting to put any locking charms on it. He looked at Draco, who was looking terrified, and his eyes slowly travelled over to the door, feeling a mixture of nerves, apprehension and anger and annoyance that someone had interrupted them. _If someone had to see us, please let it be someone who can keep a secret…._he prayed inwardly.

His heart nearly jumped out of his chest as soon as he caught sight of the person…

It was Ron.

**A/N: Okay, first of all I'm SO sorry for the rubbish kissing scene – I'm terrible at writing things like that! **

**Secondly, thank you for the reviews! :)**

**There will only be one more chapter after this, I think. **

**I'm not really happy with this chapter, but I hope it wasn't too bad! I'll try and make the next one better.**


	9. Chapter 9

"What the hell," said Ron hoarsely, "is going on in here?"

Harry took a hasty step towards him. "Ron, I can explain…"

"You'd better," said Ron in a quiet yet dangerous voice, his cheeks rapidly turning the colour of his hair.

"Just try and stay calm," said Harry slightly desperately, as Ron looked as though he was about to explode.

_"Stay calm?"_ Ron repeated, his voice shaking with anger. _"STAY CALM?_ I've just walked in on my best mate kissing Draco Malfoy and you expect me to _stay_ _calm?"_

Harry opened his mouth; however, Ron had swung round to look at Draco.

"Malfoy, this _isn't funny_," he snarled. "You've put some kind of stupid spell on him, haven't you?"

"No, believe it or not, I haven't!" Draco snapped.

"Of course you have!" Ron exclaimed. "Do you really expect me to believe that Harry _willingly_ kissed you?" He shuddered.

"He did," said Draco coldly. "And stop being so bloody homophobic!"

"I'm not being homophobic!" Ron spluttered. "I've known that Harry is gay for ages and I haven't got a problem with it! I'm more shocked by the fact that he has chosen _you,_ of all people…" Here Ron wrinkled his nose in disgust…"to kiss!"

"Listen Ron, let me explain," Harry began, taking a deep breath as he fought to calm his racing heart. "We need to-"

_"What is going on in here?"_

Harry felt a rush of relief as he spotted Hermione hovering behind Ron, looking concerned.

"I've just walked in on _them-"_ Ron gestured towards Harry and Draco with unnecessary vigour, "kissing!"

Hermione sighed. "Look Ron, come with me. You need some space to think about it…" She took hold of his arm and led him away, casting a reassuring look over her shoulder at Harry and Draco.

Draco took a deep breath and turned to Harry, who buried his head in his hands. "That was not how I planned to tell him," he groaned.

"_Tell him?"_ Draco repeated cautiously. A faint smile was forming at the corners of his lips. "Tell him what?"

"Well, about us," said Harry, a smile spreading across his face as Draco's eyes lit up.

"So, are you saying we're-" Draco began tentatively.

"If you want," said Harry, feeling a flicker of nerves.

Draco didn't answer, he simply kissed him again. This time, much to Harry's delight, it went uninterrupted.

Xxx

The next few days passed horrible slow. Ron refused to talk to Harry, in fact, he didn't go anywhere near him, sitting as far away from him in class as he could. Hermione, however, was sympathetic, and insisted that she was pleased for Harry and Draco, and was trying to talk Ron round.

"It will be fine," she told Harry firmly. "He'll eventually come round – he just needs some time to get used to the idea, that's all."

"Hope you're right," said Harry dully.

On the positive side, Harry and Draco were getting along better than either of them had ever anticipated. There was only one thing playing on Harry's mind, something that he was desperate to ask Draco, but nervous to do so. However, they were in a relationship now, and he knew that they would have to share things with one another.

"Draco?" he said one day. "Can I ask you something?"

Draco nodded. "Go ahead."

"Why do you never go flying now?"

Draco sighed. "I was waiting for you to ask me that."

"Are you going to tell me this time?" Harry asked gently.

Draco shrugged, a strange expression crossing his face. "It's nothing. I'm just a bit…nervous about the idea of flying, that's all."

"Why?" Harry asked in surprise.

"After the room of requirement fire," said Draco rather abruptly. "I always associate flying with fire now." He shuddered slightly and lowered his head to his work.

Harry struggled to think of something to say, whilst fighting a feeling of sympathy for Draco. He hadn't considered that fear could have been the reason that Draco would no longer fly, but now that he thought of it, it made perfect sense.

"I can help you overcome that fear if you want," he said quietly.

Draco looked up at once. "You would?" He swallowed, shaking his head. "I don't think it will work…"

"Well, we might as well try," said Harry with forced brightness.

Draco's face broke into a smile. "You're right. We'll try. Thank you," he added more quietly.

Harry smiled back at him. "It's fine."

Xxx

Two weeks later, Draco finally managed to cast the Patronus charm.

"What did you think of?" Harry asked in delight. "That must have been quite a powerful memory - you cast the spell brilliantly!"

Draco smiled. "What do you think I thought of?" At Harry's questioning look, he sighed impatiently. "Us."

Harry couldn't stop the grin that was threatening to break his face in two. Although he had had an inkling of what Draco was going to say, he had wanted to hear it from his own lips.

Xxx

As Harry entered the charms classroom, he couldn't help but feel that something was different. He glanced over at his desk, and it hit him. For the first time in weeks, Ron was sitting down on his original seat, in his chair that was next to Harry. Before Harry could ponder over this and what it might mean, Ron glanced up and spotted him. The two boys stared at one another for a few seconds before Ron forced his face into something resembling a…_smile?_

Inwardly rejoicing, Harry made his way over to Ron, who greeted him with a small, nervous nod.

"Surprised to see you sitting here," said Harry quietly, sliding into his seat and placing his bag on the floor.

Ron shrugged. "Hermione's been talking to me," he said abruptly. "About you and Draco."

Harry nodded and sighed heavily. "Ron, I know this whole situation is horrible for you, but I'm _happy _with Draco. I'm-"

"I know you are," Ron interrupted. "And I don't think I mind so much now." He hesitated. "Well, I do mind a little bit, but not as much as I did. I've had time to think about it, and Hermione's been discussing it with me…"

Harry felt a rush of gratitude towards Hermione. "So do you really not mind?"

Ron grimaced. "Hermione pointed out to me that your behaviour in sixth year kind of pointed towards you…well, you know. Liking him." He shrugged awkwardly. "Anyway, I'm glad you're happy."

"Thank you," said Harry, feeling properly happy for the first time in weeks. "You don't know how much I appreciate that, Ron."

Ron smiled at him, and it was a genuine smile. "I don't mind it so much. Not anymore."

Xxx

"So he doesn't mind?" said Draco in bewilderment. "He really doesn't mind?"

"Not now he's had time to think about it," said Harry with a smile. "I was sure he'd come round eventually though. I just hoped it would be sooner rather than later."

"Are we ever going to tell anyone else?" Draco asked quietly.

Harry nodded. "We'll have to. If we don't, people will soon start guessing the truth anyway."

Draco sighed heavily. "But we'll be fine, won't we?"

Harry nodded, wondering if it was possible to feel anymore happy than he currently did. "We have each other."

**A/N: So that's the end of this fic! Thank you so, so much to the people who have reviewed this – you are all wonderful! I hope this chapter was a good ending to this story (I hope it didn't come across as too rushed), and thank you for reading :)**


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